Are Party Gaming and Bwin going to get together?

The Austrian online bookmaker Bwin Interactive Entertainment AG is reported to be in discussions with Party Gaming Plc with a view to a possible merger that would create a dominant force in the online gaming world. At the moment the industry in Europe has no really dominant players due to the number of individual companies involved but Bwin is certainly one of the larger ones followed by Party Gaming and William Hill but even a combination of the first two is unlikely to worry the competition commission. Party Gaming said it is in discussion with a number of companies but that they were all at an early stage while Bwin who last year completed a deal with Italy’s Gioco Digitale simply said that they talk with a lot of competitors but some discussions were successful and others were not. With so many companies involved the sector would appear to be ripe for consolidation but whether this one works out or not remains to be seen. There were widespread rumours last year about a deal between Bwin and 888 but that didn’t come to anything or at least not yet. Party Gaming is of course best known for its Party Poker brand and last July signalled its interest in expanding beyond poker with the acquisition of Cashcade which in turn owns Foxy Bingo and it also showed intent for the US market when it bought the owner of the World Poker Tour (WPT) but so far has no sports betting or complete casino offering. As mentioned 888 Holdings might also be interesting as might the Swedish group Unibet. We shall keep you posted.